The FIDE family congratulates His Excellency, FIDE President Kirsan Ilyumzhinov for a decade of his leadership of FIDE. It was on this day ten years ago at the FIDE Congress in Paris, France that he was first elected FIDE President. With his vision and generosity, personally contributing millions of dollars to chess, FIDE has taken great leaps forward. Read more.
The FIDE family congratulates His Excellency, FIDE President Kirsan Ilyumzhinov for a decade of his leadership of FIDE. It was on this day ten years ago at the FIDE Congress in Paris, France that he was first elected FIDE President. With his vision and generosity, personally contributing millions of dollars to chess, FIDE has taken great leaps forward.

Since 1995, FIDE has succeeded in organizing a number of World Championships and Women’s World Championships from the 1996 Karpov-Kamsky World Championship Match in Elista, Kalmykia, to the highly successful World Championship Tournament recently in San Luis, Argentina.

FIDE began the World Championship knockout series, letting the world’s top hundred players share in the increasing prize funds with events in Groningen, Netherlands and Lausanne, Switzerland in 1997/98, in Las Vegas, USA in 1999, in New Delhi, India and Tehran, Iran in 2000, in Moscow, Russia in 2001/02, and in Tripoli, Libya for men and Elista, Kalmykia for women in 2004.

As a result of the close rapport between the FIDE President and International Olympic Committee President Juan Antonio Samaranch, FIDE was recognized in June 1999 as an International Federation, thereby giving official IOC status to chess as a sport. The entry of FIDE into the Olympic family had immediate worldwide impact. Many federations which did not have or had lost government funding because chess was not considered a sport in their country, were able to elevate their status in their national sports structure and benefit from government grants.

Aside from the financial benefits, the IOC recognition of chess as sport helped FIDE officials in their work to have chess included in their regional Games such as, among others, the 2003 Southeast Asian Games in Ho Chi Minh, Vietnam, the 2003 African Games in Abuja, Nigeria, the 2004 Arab Games in Algiers, Algeria, the 2005 SEA Games in Manila, Philippines and the 2006 Asian Games in Doha, Qatar.

FIDE introduced a number of innovations, such as the first fully electronic Olympiad in Elista 1998 with live coverage of all games on the Internet. FIDE organized new tournaments, such as the 2003 FIDE Grand Prix in Dubai, UAE and Moscow, Russia and the Russia vs. Rest of the World Match, 2002 in Moscow, Russia.

Soon to start is the World Cup in Khanti Mansiysk in the oil-rich northern part of Russia. And next March we shall have the Women’s World Championship in Ekaterinburg, Russia.

It is with this record in mind that the FIDE family today thanks FIDE President Kirsan Ilyumzhinov for a decade of his leadership.